“As We Know It,” an apocalyptic zombie comedy starring Chris Parnell and Pam Grier, has sold rights to Buffalo 8.
The Santa Monica-based production and distribution company will release the movie in theaters on Nov. 10 with plans for streaming and video-on-demand in late November or early December.
“We are thrilled to announce the release of this captivating and clever comedy, infused with an exhilarating twist of a zombie apocalypse horror,” Buffalo 8’s head of distribution Nikki Stier Justice said in a statement.
Set in Los Angeles in the late 1990s, the comedy-horror-romance movie follows a struggling writer named James Bishop, who is dealing with a messy breakup with the help of his best friend while trying to finish his latest book before the impending nuclear zombie apocalypse. The cast also includes Mike Castle (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”), Oliver Cooper (“Project X”), Taylor Blackwell (“Resident Alien”) and Danny Mondello (“Sidetalk”).
Josh Monkarsh wrote and directed “As We Know It.” He says the story reflects the misadventures, friendships and heartbreak of his childhood as he grew up in ’90s-era Los Angeles. Two big sources of inspiration were John Carpenter’s sci-fi action film “They Live” and John Hughes’ coming-of-age favorite “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.”
“I was always fascinated with the idea of combining these two very different styles of storytelling,” Monkarsh said. “When I optioned the script, the character dynamic was already there but it needed some additional stakes… and that’s when I had the idea to zombify the story… oh and set it in Los Angeles, in the 90s.”
The film was produced by Monkarsh on behalf of his production company Traffic City Productions, and Daniel Cummings. “I was thrilled to have Buffalo 8 acquire the movie,” Monkarsh added. “They were already doing post for us, which made the turnover process that much smoother.”
Founded by Luke Taylor and Matthew Helderman in 2010, Buffalo 8’s credits include the Netflix original film “Rodney King,” directed by Spike Lee, Ira Sachs’ “Little Men,” and the documentary series “Conversations With a Killer: The Jeffrey Dahmer Tapes.”
Watch the trailer below: